UKC

As post title really. Wondering whether anybody has had one and was it any use.

In reply to nrhardy: depends on who's doing the analysis. mostly it's a pointless sales gimmick to guilt you into buying. If you are paying a podiatrist to analyse your gait then you'll get more out of it.

In reply to nrhardy:

Mine is quite over the top.

I overdo my German Officer goose step.

Now more like a North Korean Stormtrooper

In reply to higherclimbingwales:
Agreed. I had in done by a podiatrist/sports physio for achilles problems. Bloody expensive once you add in custom orthotics, but worth every penny.
Wouldn't recommend it unless there is an actual problem though.

In reply to nrhardy: had one done a few years ago at private clinic in Harrogate .sold some state of the art insoles for 45 quid total cost of clinic 80 quid ,nothing changed so after 2 weeks went to hospital and found 3 dislocations in my foot !!!

In reply to nrhardy: Yes, MANY times. Thousands of pounds worth, over a decade or so. Interesting how many different diagnoses I got.

Having now stopped wearing orthotics totally, I've concluded it was a pointless waste of money, and probably time and effort.

Work on good form, and on proper training load (ie sufficient rest). Probably do some 'Pre'-hab exercises, like one legged balancing, lunges, etc. This will contribute much more towards remaining injury free than a few millimetres of shaped plastic based on a few minutes on a treadmill, or a pressure cushion showing you've... got bad form.

Unless you've done those two things, I wouldn't bother seeing a podiatrist/ chiropodist/ snake oil salesman.

In reply to nrhardy:

Yup while buying running shoes at Pro Feet on Fulham Road.

Took 10 seconds, I was told that I had stiff toes and therefore needed bigger shoes than previously.

Sorted.

In reply to lmarenzi:

That sounds like the typical pseudo-medical diagnosis I'd expect from a shop trying to sell you a pair of shoes!

In reply to higherclimbingwales: Bet they were out of stock of the smaller size

In reply to Rip van Winkle:

Actually they had all the sizes but were out of all colours except white ... so I got the white ones!

Haha

In reply to nrhardy:

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=ministry+of+funny+walks&tbm=isch&...

Thanks for replies. Just going to go to a sports physio, as opinion is clearly divided!

In reply to nrhardy:

My friend had gait analysis at a specialist running shop; they diagnosed over-pronation and sold him insoles to suit. His foot/leg problems got worse, so he paid for a reputable sports physio, who diagnosed supination. He's now using orthotics provided by this physio, and he's been fine for a couple of years.

I had severe problems with ITBS as a result of over-pronation; I was refered to an NHS sports physio who showed me some good exercises and provided orthotics on the NHS. That was in 2009, and I've been fine since.

In reply to Ander:

Totally agree with this. Podiatrist diagnosed a condition I didn't really have in order to extort mega bucks out of me.

His custom orthotics, provided so much support my foot became weaker and the injury became worse. At the last meeting when I said it wasn't getting better he rubbed his chin and asked how deep my pockets were and suggested I might need surgery. I ripped out the orthotics, after all I'd managed 37 years without them.

Bit of physio, stretching and strengthening exercises have been much more useful.

In reply to nrhardy:

This is all a bit vague.

First of all, everyone has different gait characteristics within normal variants, therefore if you have gait analysis undertaken by someone trying to make some money they will identify a problem and charge you for treatment - podiatrists, running/walking shops etc are notorious for this. The problem with this is that altering biomechanics within normal variants but without symptoms may actually cause problems. It is important that you have a symptom to be managed.

There's quite a lot more to this.

Put simply, only seek gait analysis if you have a symptom or have been advised by a medical professional - preferably one not incentified by taking your money.

I work in this field both for the health service and privately.

In reply to nrhardy:

If you're suffering with dodgy knees or ankles it is well worth visiting a qualified podiatrist. Ask around to find out who's good in your area, there are a lot of useless ones out there, people at a local running club might be able to offer suggestions. I found one in Edinburgh that's involved with helping international rugby players and the like, not cheap but well worth it. For some people they just need to learn the "right" way to run/walk/etc and do some exercises to build up certain muscles. I ended up getting custom orthotics and they changed my life. I went from hobbling painfully around town to being able to run 10k in 45 minutes, do long multi-munro walks and regularly climb.

In reply to nrhardy:

I was referred by my GP due to chronic problems with tendonitis and extreme pain in both feet. Went to the local hospital and had my gait and other aspects of my medical and family history analyzed and ended up getting orthotics which has cut down the problems and pain to a large degree. Certainly happy to be off the Diclofenac!